Title: A Happy Accident
Author: Shen
Rating: PG

Characters: Ten/Jack/Rose, Martha, OC
Summary: What if, instead of Jack flinging the TARDIS to the end of this universe in Utopia, the ship had jumped universes instead? Originally written for the OT3 ficathon.

Author's Note: This is it! Last chapter. This story was the first thing I've written in quite a long while, so please tell me what you think of it!

Chapter Nine: New Starts

Rose steps out of the ship and goes straight to her mother, allowing the harassed Jefferson to step aside gratefully.

"Mum…" She swallows, and her mother raises her eyebrows in concern. God, this is hard. "Mum, I'm going." The older woman sighs, surprising Rose.

"Well, of course you're going! I guessed that, didn't I? As soon as Pete told me who'd shown up. But I'm makin' a fuss because you aren't going anywhere without saying goodbye!"

"Oh, Mum, I would never!" Getting teary-eyed, Rose hugs her mother fiercely.

"You're going?" asks Jefferson, regarding her with wide eyes over her mother's shoulder. The older woman backs off and gives Rose a look.

"Go on then. Say goodbye to everyone, but I get the last hug! And himself better come down for one, too." Now her mother's crying, but obligingly, Rose turns to her lieutenant.

"You'll just have to replace me, Jefferson Green. Going is the best thing for me; I'm sorry," she explains gently.

"But I can't replace you!" Usually the picture of composure, he now emanates dismay.

"You'll be just as good as me! Or better; you know I'm crap at keeping up with the paperwork. An' you even have a degree, right?" she cajoles.

"But your experience, and your..." he trails off and makes a vague hand gesture.

"'Perspective?'" she laughs. "You've gained a lot of experience since I took over for your old leader, and I'd like to think my bizarre way of doing things has rubbed off on you, am I right?" Finally, the man musters a smile, possibly thinking of the time she used peanut butter and hand-signal negotiation on a crash-landed alien. She convinced the hungry pilot to subsist on celery instead of unsavory things while he worked on repairs. The downside of that being that the occasional Frax gourmet visits the planet to sample its wares. Not that they attack anyone; they are just incredibly rude.

"Then I promise to keep your eccentricities in mind, Rose. I'll miss you, though."

"You, too." He gets a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and then Rose is saying farewell to her other squad-mates, who must have been ordered here when Jefferson first reported the disturbance. Finally, Mickey is before her.

"It figures; he shows up, and you leave me out of the adventure." He frowns and tries to look pathetic until Rose gives him a shove. "But actually, Rose… do you think I can come with you? Just to hitch a ride?" She blinks in surprise.

"You sure?"

"Yes." While a shock, this does make a sort of sense. His gran has died in this universe. Also, Jake and he have to work closely, but it's incredibly awkward, because apparently Alternate Mickey had a very special relationship with the blonde man, and her Mickey doesn't swing that way. So, what was keeping Mickey here except Jackie, who didn't have much time for him with Tony to take care of?

Rose grins, still impressed at his bravery, and asks, "Mickey Smith, aren't you tired of starting over?"

"What can I say? I'm my own man." He lifts his chin with bravado. Rose looks over at Jack and thinks about his Torchwood… a small operation that's about to lose some of its workforce. Hmm. That's a thought for a later time, however; she pats her lifelong friend on the shoulder to send him over to the Doctor.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Doctor's just sent Mickey, bag in hand (cheeky thing had it in his car in preparation), to find his old room, and now he watches Rose say goodbye. However, he begins to worry about his chances for earning her full trust again, because Jackie is hugging his lover with life-threatening force. Even his advanced physiology is still smarting from the squeeze he'd gotten, to say nothing of the brief but intense lecture on keeping her daughter happy. Meanwhile, Pete pats the older woman's back gingerly.

"Come on, Mum, don't be guilty about staying. You have a little one that needs his daddy. And all that money won't hurt him either!"

Shaking his head, the Doctor next gazes at the shell-shocked Jefferson. If it didn't entail permanently removing the man from his friends, family, and career, the Doctor would invite him aboard. He is efficient and cool under pressure, like a good soldier should be, but without any trace of viciousness. Of course, Rose wouldn't hold him in such high esteem if he had such proclivities.

"Doctor?" comes a voice at his elbow. It's Martha, giving him an odd look. "Can you take me home when we get back?" His jaw drops, and he stands upright.

"Martha, I'm not kicking you off! Please don't leave on our account." But she's shaking her head.

"I just want to go back to my career for a while, before I forget everything I learned in medical school. But," she starts, now pointing a finger at him menacingly, "don't you let me wait forever for a visit! You're not getting rid of me that easily." And medicine isn't so enthralling that she'll never want a ride in the TARDIS again, he suspects.

"Yes, ma'am." He holds open his arms, and, after a split-second hesitation, she comes in for a hug. "And I'm sorry for-" He stalls.

"Yeah, you're a real idiot, albeit one with more problems than I thought. But I'm happy for you," she says in his ear. It's very big of her to say that, and when trying to respond, the Doctor discovers a lump in his throat. So he just nods against her before letting her go.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jackie Tyler watches the blue box steal her daughter away for the last time and tries to keep her eyes from blurring too much. This needs to be remembered clearly. All she can do is be thankful it was done proper, with a real goodbye. She used to fear that some wild circumstance would send Rose back to the old universe without so much as a by-your-leave. This way, at least, Jackie had been able to give her daughter the scrapbook she had so painstakingly prepared for her, just for this occasion.

Pete squeezes her shoulder, and she leans into him. Tony waits for them at home, even as her first child travels farther away than she ever thought possible. But she'll be happy, with her Doctor.

Rose will be missed. It's not perfect, perhaps. But, Jackie's sure, it's absolutely right.